His Beatitude John X visits Tiganesti Monastery

Located in the middle of the road linking Bucharest to Ploiesti and 3 km from the village Ciolpani, Tiganesti Monastery is found in a wonderful scenery of forests and waters.

Tiganesti Monastery appears in the document of donation and sale - purchase of the July 1780 of Matei Tiganescu (whose name it bears) and of his cousin Paraschiva Caplescu who builds a church on this land. Under the name of Tiganesti is attested in the rulers' donations: Moruzi 1793, Caragea in 1813 and Prince Dimitrie Ghica in 1824.

The legend supported by the fact that the monastery's diptych begins with Michael the Brave and and Ms. Stanca, certifies that the settlement dates back from the early sec. XVII, being built by romanian monks from Mount Athos, when these places were Vlasiei forests.

Tiganesti Monastery was initially a cells place and a wooden church. From this church has been preserved the wooden miracle-working icon of the Virgin Mary with Baby Jesus in her arms. The hermitage Tiganesti inhabited by monks, passes in the care of Caldarusani Monastery, then shortly the monks from here are moved to Caldarusani, in their place settling the nuns from Hermitage.

The wooden church became too small and was demolished and in its place was built in 1812 the present church dedicated to the Assumption, its builder being Radu Golescu.

Many earthquakes have affected the church and other buildings, which have been repaired and restored, suffered on this occasion some changes. Outside, the mosaic was restored by painter Gh Raducanu and the iconostasis painted in 1895 by Gheorghe Stoenescu was repaired in 1989 by Gheorghe Samoila. 

The monastery is located on a peninsula, the land is not very stable and in the years 1980-1984 the building was restored. The cemetery church dedicated to Holy Trinity was built in 1817 and painted by Anthony Serafin. It is a clittle church, beautifully proportioned, in a three-lobed plan with an open porch, post Brancoveanu architectural style.

The building, built in 1848, was used originally as an orphanage, school and finally museum in 1989. Here are exhibits like sculpture in wood, glass, metal, cloth, books and religious objects, old clothing.

The monastery ensemble also has the bell tower, the monastic houses, thedining hall, the cemetery and the workshops. In this workshop work the convent's nuns and the materials used for the priests' clothing are of silk with gold and silver thread. 

In the cemetery are found the ancient funerary monuments, and we should mentioned Diamandescu family monument, the work of the sculptor Karol Stork in 1889. The monastery was fully involved in the events of the time, the independence war and two world wars by helping the army with medical assistance offered by nuns of the Red Cross.

Here in the monastery was founed the first elementary school, from 1818 until 1878. In 1923 opens the "Leather Training School" where it was taught: embroidery art, weaving carpets, national spuns, crafts that are still practiced in the workshop